Illuminated house number



ILLUMI NATED HOUSE NUMBER Filed May 21. 1923 3H uculn harlesEDearHn Patented Aug. 19, 1924.

UlTED STATES CHARLES E. DEARTH, OF MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE.

ILLUMINATED HOU SE NUMBER.

Application filed May 21,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I. CHARLES E. DEARTH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Memphis, in the county of Shelby and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Illuminated House Numbers, of which the following is a specification.

My said invention relates to an illuminated house number and it is an object of the invention to provide a device which shall render the house number conspicuousby night, and in fact the number will usually be even more conspicuous by night than by day when arranged according to my invention.

A further object of the invention is to provide a structur of this character which can be set into the wall and which when located in a brick wall will replace a single brick.

A further object of the inventior is to provide a device of the character described which shall be inexpensive to manufacture as it is simpleand has few parts, these parts also being common and inexpensive.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part hereof and on which similar reference characters indicate similar parts,

Figure 1 is a perspective of a part of a house front with my device applied thereto,

Fig re 2 a longitudinal section of the device in a horizontal plane, and

Figure 3 a transverse section in a vertical plane.

In the drawings reference character 10 indicates generally the bricks forming the front wall of a house having a door 11.

According to my invention I replace one of the bricks above the door with an illuminated sign comprising a metallic casing 12 which may be galvanized on the inner side and which is of a size to substantially fill the space left by omission of one of the bricks. At the front this casing is closed by a plate or sheet of glass 13, the glass being heavily frosted at the rear or inner side for proper diffusion of the inner light. A coat of black paint is applied to the outer face of the glass, provision being made for leaving certain parts of the front face of the glass uncoatcd as at 14 in Figure 1, thus providing numerals or other characters readable by day because of the contrasting colors and readable by night by reason of a 1923. Serial No. 640,517.

source of illumination such as an electric lamp 15 mounted in a socket 16 within the casing.-

A pair of wires 17 extend rearwardly from the casing either between bricks in a course or through a space left by omitting a brick or part of a brick and these wires are adapted to be connected to the usual gang of switches ordinarily found at the front door of a residence.

The glass at the front of the oasin is held in place by a border plate 18 exten ing about the plate of glass 13 and covering the edges thereof. This plate is secured in place by brads 19 or screws may be used if desired since it is necessary from time to time to remove the plate for replacing the electric bulb when the latter burns out. In a preferred construction of the device the sheet metal of the casing is bent at its forward edges to bear against the rear side of the glass 13 and is then bent to extend over the edges of the glass and bear against the front side. The ends of the casing at 20 are so formed as to leave spaces between them and the glass at 21. which spaces provide for ventilation of the interior of the casing and escape of the heat from the lamp. \Vhenever it becomes necessarv to replace the glass or the lam it will be seen that the plate 18 can first removed and thereafter the glass, if un 'broken', can he slid lengthwise of the sign between the front flanges 22 of the casing 12.

It will also be seen that the casing which in one aspect forms a false brick will preferably be large enough to take the place of a brick and the mortar surroundin the brick. though this need not necessaril y be so. \Vhen the wall is laid the casing may be built into it, with or without the light and the wires 17 will be properly placed in the wall. Thereafter an electrician may connect up the wires in connection with his work on other fixtures.

I have shown and described a preferred form of my invention but it will be obvious if that numerous changes can be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention therefore I do not limit myself to the specific form shown and described but only as indicated in the appended claims.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A sign adapted to be used as brick 2. A house sign adapted to replace a brick in a vertical wall said sign comprising a sheet of metal bent to form a casing having a front approximately the shape and size of one face of a brick, said front having edges bent outwardly and inwardly to form parallel U-shaped guides, the inner faces of said guides being adapted to seat against the outer face of the wall, a sheet of glass at the front of the casing held in said guides, transparent .indicia on'said glass, a lamp in the casing, and an open border plate covering the guiding edges of the casing and the edges of the glass said plate being removably secured against said casing, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal at Memphis, Tennessee this 27th day of April, A. D. nineteen hun dred and twenty-three.

CHARLES E. DEAR-TH. [L. s.]

Witnesses:

JOHN W. FARLEY, F. M. BAILEY. 

